When Lizzie Met Will
by Literater
Summary: A modern day, young adult version of P&P I wrote when I was younger. Lizzie Bennet is in her last year at school when two new students turn her life upside down. Love, friendship, family, revenge - that's what happens when Lizzie Met Will!
1. A Party is a Party!

I met Will Darcy on the 31st of December 2006, and I instantly knew that we were going to have our differences. It was just after Christmas, and my family hadn't gone away anywhere, unlike many of the students at my school, whose parents whisk them away to exotic places like Central America, Tahiti or Australia. It also meant that like every year, we would attend the annual Lucas New Year's Eve Party, one of the biggest events on the social calendar for the utterly rich and in the right social circles of London. This funnily enough, didn't include me or my family.

The only reason that we were going was that the eldest Lucas child, Charlotte, was my best friend. That and my father had known Sir Lucas (yes, he's a _Sir_) from university. The only good thing about the party was that Charlotte was going to be there.

"Lizzie dear, I've laid out an outfit on your bed. I think you will find it is very attractive," Mum called from the kitchen. "Very hip and very now." She was smiling at me in that gross, motherly way.  
"Mum, I've just turned eighteen. I think I can choose my own clothes." Kitty and Lydia snickered, and I rolled my eyes at them. "Why don't you choose Lydia's clothes for a change? Maybe then she'll stop looking like a baby prostitute." I glowered at my younger sister, who was wearing a red dress that barely covered anything up. Lydia protested, whacking my arm.  
"Just go upstairs and get dressed Lizzie, we're late enough as it is," Mum replied sternly. I grumbled, and went upstairs. No doubt she would have picked out something completely horrible for me.

I stared at myself in the mirror. I looked like Bridget Jones in the turkey curry buffet scene. No, I looked worse. I tugged off the material that looked like Bambi road kill, and chucked on my favourite pair of denim jeans, a black singlet and a dark turquoise crossover, complimented by the pair of ballet flats I had bought from French Sole the other day, the ones in navy print that had cost a whole week's pay.

"You're not wearing mum's outfit then?" I turned around, and saw Jane wearing a beautiful blue wraparound dress, her coat slung over her arms.  
"No," I laughed. "I look like Bridget Jones at the turkey curry buffet. I do not know why I can not stay home," I whinged at Jane, grabbing my coat and heading back downstairs.

"It won't be that bad. Charlotte will be there," Jane pointed out.

"Yeah, well, she has to be there. It is her parent's stupid party."

"True, but at least she will still be there," Jane counteracted.

"Didn't say that there was another family coming to the party? A new family in the upper crust of the lives of London's wealthiest socialites," I asked.

"Two new families that the Lucas's have been introduced to. The Darcy's and the Bingley's," Jane corrected me. "They are from Derbyshire apparently, and the latter has two daughters and a son in our year, and earlier a son our age and a daughter Lydia's age."  
"Interesting," I said. "Hopefully they are nice. We need a new change in faces."

"Are we that bad as company Lizzie?" Jane laughed, playfully pushing me down the stairs.

"You're not wearing the dress?" Mum's voice was high pitched and stressed from all the preparation for tonight. I rolled my eyes.

"Mum, five words. Bridget Jones, carpet, Turkey Curry and Buffet." She sighed.  
"Well, you cannot change now. We have to go because we are late," she fussed. "Mary get off that stupid piano and get into the car now!" I walked past Dad to get to the car.

"By the way, that was six words, not five," he whispered into my ear. "Seven if you include the "and"." I looked at him in admiration. He winked at me. I was glad I had Dad. I do not think I would be able to make it in this family without him and Jane.

When we arrived at the Lucas' house, the New Year's Party was in full swing. We could hear jazz music playing as we stood outside on the doorstep, waiting for the butler to open it. He finally did, and Mum waltzed in first, flinging her coat at him. "About time you opened that door. It is freezing outside," was her remark. Jane and I threw him an apologetic look as well shrugged out of our coats and handed them to him.

If it was one thing the Lucas's could throw it was a party. And this New Year's Party was no exception. An ordinary person could make HAPPY NEW YEAR 2007! banners look incredibly tacky. Mrs. Lucas however, made them look über chic. We stepped into the main living room, which was about the size of our kitchen and lounge room combined.

Red, gold and black balloons hung in batches in the corners of the room. Another banner, larger than the one in the hallway but with the same words had been hung from one side of the left wall to the other. Underneath it was a table filled with all sorts of savoury foods and sweets. About ten little children milled around it, checking to see if any of the adults noticed that they were taking the sweets. The adults did not notice this thievery, because they were too sloshed to notice it. Waiters in the same red, gold and black as the balloons walked around the room, flutes of champagne in one hand.

I saw Mum waltz once again, this time towards the host and hostess, who were chatting to a couple I did not recognise. "Lizzie, I was wondering when you would arrive!" I turned around, giving Charlotte a hug. "Char! God, don't you look gorgeous!" I yelled above the noise. She was wearing a wrap around dress like Jane's, only with white spots on a black background. "Mother insisted that Maria and I had new clothes for tonight, considering it is a New Year!" she yelled back. "It is quite nice, is it not it?" I said, steering Char to the side of the room, the one closest to where the food was.

She nodded in reply, the music too loud to talk over. Unfortunately we had chosen to stand by one of the speakers, which was currently blaring Michael Buble's version of _L.O.V.E_.

Jane had mysteriously disappeared from my side, probably to see if any of her girlfriends from school were around. "Where are all the people who are around our age?" I asked when the song finished. "Oh, Mum and Dad gave us teenagers a separate room to them. Come on, I will show you," she said, pulling me out of the room and toward the stairs.

"Charlotte - can I see your library?" Mary asked, popping out of nowhere. "Sure Mary. You know where it is - there's some new piano music in the piano stool too," Charlotte said. "Thanks," Mary said, and disappeared into another room. "She is the only one who actually uses that piano," Charlotte said, as we climbed the stairs. As we climbed, the music changed from jazz to pop. Ashlee Simpson's _L.O.V.E _to be more exact. I suspected the work of Lydia to be at hand.

We entered the upstairs lounge room, which was a room mainly for Char and her younger sister Maria. We walked in, and I noticed many of the kids from school. Jane and a girl in our year at school, Caitlin, were talking close to the door. Kitty and Lydia were giggling over in the corner with a bunch of friends from school, including Maria.  
They kept glancing to where Michael Horner, a boy from their year, was standing quite awkwardly in the middle of the room, playing a PSP and wearing a revolting purple suit. I kind of felt sorry for Michael Horner. He was basically Seth Cohen from the O.C, minus the hotness factor and the good sense in clothes factor, plus the neediness and really bad acne. Down the other end of the room, the plasma TV was hooked up to a PS3, and the screen was divided into four sections, with four boys glued to the lounge staring intently at the screen and yelling obscene comments at each other to try and put the other off.

'Wow, Char this is one raving party," I said sarcastically, looking at my friend with a smile. "Oh, do not worry, I agree." We laughed. I noticed a table in one corner.

"Ooh - food!" I cried, moving towards the table of crisps, sausage rolls and sweets. Charlotte followed me, and I grabbed one of the little sausage rolls, dipping it in some sauce. I turned back to Charlotte, about to tell her that a party is a party, but a New Year's party with mini sausage rolls is something special.

Charlotte was occupied however, talking to a boy around our age, with brown hair that had hints of copper in it. He was tall and gangly, with a cute smile. He was talking away animatedly to Char, a girl of the same age standing next to him and another boy who looked to be our age on his other side. "Lizzie," Charlotte called, just as I turned away to talk to Jane who was coming towards me. "Come meet the Bingley's." I grabbed Jane by the arm, pulling her with me. Jane and I straightened up, and I wiped the crumbs from my mouth, poking my teeth with my tongue to make sure no bits were caught in between the gaps.

"This is Charlie Bingley, his sister Caroline and his friend Will Darcy," Charlotte introduced. "Hullo," I said, extending my arm. Charlie shook it eagerly, Caroline took my hand and shook it once, as if it was made of poison and the other fellow, Will Darcy, just looked at me with a look that was a combination of boredom and disgust.

I retracted my hand, feeling the heat race to my face as my temper flared up at the rude greeting I had been given by Will and Caroline. "I have another sister, Louisa, but she's occupied at the moment," Charlie said, pointing a girl by the wall who was snogging Mitchell Hurst. "I'm Elizabeth, but please call me Lizzie, and this is my sister Jane," I said, bringing Jane out of my shadows and forward.

Charlie broke out into the widest smile I had ever seen. "Hello, Jane," he said, holding out his hand. Jane shook it, smiling back at Charlie and saying hello herself. We stood there a little while, until Charlie said to Jane, "Would you like a drink?" just a tad too eagerly.

I saw Caroline roll her eyes. Will stood there; looking utterly bored and with a look on his face that read that he thought he was above everyone else in this room. "I am going to the toilet," Caroline said, making a beeline for the door. "Char!" I heard Maria call from the other side of the room. "I will be back," Charlotte said, leaving me alone with Will.

"Do you like London?" I asked Will Darcy, trying to start up some conversation. "It is alright," was the reply. "How long have you been here, in London for?" I tried again. "Long enough." I was taken aback. Though he was incredibly good looking, with his black hair and chiselled features, Will Darcy's attitude stunk. I turned around and left Will standing by himself, and went and poured myself a drink. I looked around for Jane, but she was disappearing out the room with Charlie. I laughed. _Jane Bennet! _I thought. _You little rascal!_

_--  
_

"I was just saying to Mr and Mrs Darcy here that our Jane is quite the beauty of the family," Mum said, as Jane, Char and I walked up to where she was standing with a group of people, including Will and Charlie. "Mum," I started, but she cut me off. "Of course, a few of the lads at her school have often thought so, and she has often been whisked out to the cinema on a little date. One was ever so kind enough to write her a little love poem." I cringed. Delving into Jane's past dating history was not the sort of thing a mother should be talking about, especially in front of a potential boyfriend.

"So that put paid to it. I wonder who discovered the efficacy of poetry in driving away love!" I said quoting something from a movie I had seen a few years ago. "I though poetry was the food of love," Will spoke up, staring at me. "Of a fine, stout, healthy love it may, but I am convinced that one good sonnet will starve it completely." "What do you suggest instead then?" Will enquired. "Dancing, even if one's partner is barely tolerable," I counteracted.

_Oh God,_ I thought. _I've just had a movie quoting session with Will Darcy_. Will looked at me with a look that I could not decipher. There was the tapping of a spoon on a crystal glass, signalling for the room to fall quiet. I turned to where Mrs. Lucas was standing with a champagne glass in her hand. "Ladies and gentlemen, it is fifteen minutes until it is midnight, so I thought I would start my speech now," Mrs. Lucas started. "Thank you all so very much for coming to my little party, as it is a real honour and privilege to be going into a fresh New Year of 2007 with all of you." I groaned inwardly.

Mrs. Lucas had used the same speech five years in a row now, with the only changes being in which year it was. I tuned out for a while, gazing around the room, until I looked past where the Darcy family was standing. Will was standing next to a man that looked exactly like him, only taller and older. There was a woman next to the man with chestnut hair.  
A girl who looked to be around Lydia's age stood next to Will, with the same chestnut hair as her mother. I must have been staring too long, because Will chose that moment to look over in my direction, our eyes meeting for a split second. Will's dark brown eyes stared intently into my blue ones, with a glare. I turned away, angry with myself for letting myself be caught looking at that pompous idiot.

--

It was closing into midnight, and all around us husbands and wives, boyfriends and girlfriends or people who had just hooked up that night (namely Louisa Bingley and Mitchell Hurst) were gathering in small clumps, getting ready for the New Year Countdown. The Lucas's had opened up the balcony, and those who were brave enough to tolerate the cold stood outside, watching the snowfall as they waited for the fireworks to begin. Char and I sat on the balcony, our legs dangling off the side as we tried to catch snowflakes with our tongues. Two empty glasses of what had been full with eggnog sat by us, and we were giggling uncontrollably.

"God, it is freezing," I said, pulling my coat around me tighter. "It is beautiful though," Char said, sighing. Snow continued to fall around us slowly. We sat in silence for a while, watching the drunken people in the street yell out things or start a snowball fight. I opened my mouth to suggest to Char that we go down and start our own snowball fight, but voices interrupted me.

"Why do you not find someone to talk to Will, and stop being unsociable? Find a girl or someone to bring in the New Year with," Charlie said, leaning against the balcony a little way away from us.

Obviously Charlie and Will didn't notice us there, all wrapped up in coats and scarfs. We looked invisible underneath all the layers we had put on before coming outside. "You have been keeping the only decent girl in here all to yourself Charlie," was Will's reply. "Jane has four other sisters Will. What about Lizzie, who we met earlier? She is quite pretty," Charlie pushed.

I lifted my head high, preening, send Char and I into a fit of quiet giggles. "Shhh!" she whispered to me.

"Not enough to make me interested though," Will said. I laughed aloud, and then covered my mouth with my hand. _That rude, arrogant, conceited, ignoramus!_ I looked at Char. "Come on Will, she is not that bad," I faintly heard Charlie say as they walked back inside.

I sat there, not really absorbing everything because the eggnog was going to my head. I started laughing, and Char joined in. "Come on, let us go inside," I said, standing up and offering my arm to Charlotte. She and I linked arms, and trooped back inside. "I do not care for Mr. Darcy," I said, in an upper class accent. "I would not swap him for the whole of Derbyshire, let alone the miserable half." Charlotte snorted, and we burst into a fit of giggles.

"What are you two laughing at?" Jane said s she walked up to us. I relayed to Jane the conversation between Charlie and Will. "Surely not!" Jane said. "Why would Will say something like that?"

"Because he is a vaniteux cochon," I said, speaking in French. "Lizzie!" Jane scolded, while laughing at the same time.

"Look, it is almost time," Char said, pointing to the clock hanging over the mantelpiece. At that moment, Charlie popped up out of nowhere. "Um, I - I was wondering if you would like to ring in the New Year with me," Charlie said really fast to Jane. I looked at Jane, who had gone red. "Of course," she spluttered back. That left Charlotte and myself. "Come on - let's go get some more eggnog before the countdown," Charlotte said, guiding me towards a waiter. Everyone was gathering in the room now, making it a tight squeeze.

I saw Will and Caroline standing in a corner by themselves. Will looked over in my direction, and I ducked my head.

"This way, I laughed. Everybody started yelling at once. "Ten! Nine! Eight!" We grabbed a glass, and headed over to the front of the room. "Seven! Six! Five!" Char and I joined in, yelling at the top of our lungs. "Four! Three! Two! One! Happy New Year!" everyone screamed, hugging and kissing each other. 'Auld Lang Syne' started up, and soon everyone was singing and swaying, too tipsy to care who was watching. I gave Jane a hug. "Happy New Year!" I said.

"Let's hope it is a good one."  
"Don't forget to make your resolutions," Jane said, laughing.

I was notorious in our household for never keeping mine. Not this year, however. "I am going to find someone who is funny, sweet, and cute and interested in me," I said to Jane, seeing Will and Charlie emerge from the crowd from the corner of my eye. "And it is going to be a fantastic year!"


	2. Arrogance, Pride and Vanity

We were one of the last people to leave the Lucas's, at around three in the morning. When we arrived home, I quickly changed into my pyjamas and went into the bathroom to brush my teeth.

"So Jane, what did you and Charlie talk about?" I asked, coming out of our adjoining bathroom into her room.

Jane was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling and already in her pj's. I jumped on her bed, lying down next to her, toothbrush in my mouth.

"Everything and nothing," was her sighed reply.

"I think he likes you," I said in a sing song voice. "Really?" Jane asked. I sat up, and looked at Jane.

"Jane. He talked to you and you alone for the entire night. Of course I think he likes you. Plus, you went off into the bedrooms with him," I jested.

"Only to talk!" Jane laughed as I wiggled my eyebrows. "You'll never guess what happened though," Jane started, sitting up to face me, a pillow in her lap.

"Charlie opened a bedroom door, and we walked in thinking it was empty, only to realise that Louisa and Mitchell Hurst were going for it on the bed." I choked back laughter. "What?" I cried. "How awful for Charlie!"

I could not contain my laughter, and I rolled over on the bed. "Liz!" Jane said. "God, he was so embarrassed. He went a pale red and went "Er… righto then," it was so cute."

"What, Louisa and Mitchell making out on a bed?"

"No!" Jane hit me with the pillow. There was silence for a few minutes, and then Jane spoke up.

"Did you and Will talk nicely?" she asked on a more serious note. I snorted. "I never want to talk to him again. What a rude and arrogant -"

"Lizzie!" Jane cut me off.

"What? It is true. He is arrogant and he is proud. He thinks he is the best thing since sliced bread for goodness sake."

"He's Charlie's best friend though," Jane pointed out. "I do not see how that is even possible. Charlie is way nicer than him," I counteracted.

"Just be nice Lizzie," Jane said, sliding into her bed. I hopped off, taking the hint. "What do you mean? I'm always nice," I said, heading back through the bathroom room. "You know what I mean," Jane called.

"Good night!" I yelled at her in response, and she replied with a wave of her hand. I shut the bathroom door, sighing. I rinsed out my mouth before heading back into my room, and switched off my computer and found a book to read.

I grabbed a blanket off my bed, and went to sit in my window seat. I opened the book at the page I had last read. After a few minutes I sighed, putting the book on my lap and resting my head against the cool glass.

I watched outside as snow started to gently fall, some party goers who were clearly drunk started to catch the flakes on their tongue, only to fall onto the ground in a fit of laughter. I stood up, chucking the blanket back on my bed, the book on the bedside table and turned off my lamp, climbing into bed.

Hopefully sleep would take my mind off a certain someone who I really did not want to think about.


	3. It is a Truth

**A/N: I just wanted to say thanks here for all the people that have reviewed so far, it means a lot. And thank you for your help as well - I have an issue with paragraphing, we don't get along well together. I'm glad you all like the story so far! You may have also noticed that I haven't edited it - this story is in its true form from when I first wrote it a couple of years ago. Anyway, I hope you like the following chapters!**

_It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife._

I bit my lip, sighing. I scribbled out the ink on my page, pulling a new sheet of paper out of my file. I was sure that somebody had already used that line before me.

"This is bollocks," I whispered to myself, sitting back in my chair. It was the first day back of Year Twelve after Winter break, and I was in my Creative Writing class, which was my first class of the morning.

We were supposed to be writing a short story on anything that was to do with money, and I was under the little spell of writer's block. "The Queen lay flat on the £5 note, wondering why she was painted in a green or purple colour," I muttered.

"Do you mind?" Will Darcy, the person sitting next to me hissed. "Some of us are actually trying to do the assessment here."

"What do you think I am doing then?" I hissed back at Will. "Stop muttering; it is distracting," was his reply, and he cast a glare in my direction.

I glowered back. How dare he? It was Will Darcy's first day at the London Grammar School for Boys and Girls after all.

London Grammar School for Boys and Girls was one of the top schools in the whole of Great Britain. The school had been educating children since the Dark Ages, which is approximately 1806.

Starting from the humble beginnings of a nursery school, educating the brats of London's wealthiest; the school had eventually grown into a middle and senior school as well, going right up to the sixth form.

Originally it was only a school for boys, and then in 1901 the current headmaster, Jonathon Davies thought that it would be a good idea to let girls in as well, so the 'and Girls' was added to the title of the school. The school is smack bang in the middle of London, across the road from St. James and best of all, twenty metres away from the best coffee shop in all of London, _The Park_.

London Prep is set in a 'C' shape, with various buildings scattered around nearby. The seniors occupy the left wing of the main building, which are two storeys. The right wing is the middle and nursery school, with the lunch hall in the middle of the building, with the Administration on the other side.

Luckily for us, senior and middle school have different lunch breaks, and the nursery school has a separate lunch hall.

Directly across from the Left Wing of the main building is the ancient Bergman Library, which has thousands and thousands of books about everything and nothing, and is one of my favourite places on the school grounds.

Across from the Right Wing of the main building is the Performing Arts Centre, which is equally as ancient as the library, with an old style theatre for an audience of one hundred, music rooms, and practice rooms for dance with old wooden floors, walls covered with mirrors, a barre and a baby grand piano in the corner of each room.

"What is your problem?" I asked Will. "It is your first day here and already you're creating the perception that you're an insolent and arrogant arse."

"Is that the perception of the whole school or just the one you so carelessly made about me the other week?" Will whispered loudly.

I coughed, half choking. "The moment you walked into this room you made it clear to everyone that you thought yourself above the whole class," I retorted.

Will opened his mouth to say something, then shut it again, reminding me of a goldfish. I smiled smugly, thinking I had won the argument.

"Is there a problem, Miss. Bennet?" my Creative Writing and English Literature teacher, Mr. Riley asked, from behind me. I turned around in my seat so that I was facing him. "Then why are you talking, after I gave the whole class strict instructions not to?" I gulped.

Mr. Riley was one of my favourite teachers, because he was passionate and committed to teaching his students the art of writing and the language of literature. On the contrary, though, he was harsh, especially when it came to things like not following instructions and talking.

"Since you seem unable to answer my question, Miss. Bennet, maybe you would like to join the other trouble makers in this school for detention after school today," Mr. Riley said, breaking me out of my reverie, causing me to groan. I had never ever had detention throughout the whole course of my education. Now Will Darcy waltzes into my life, deliberately provoking and arguing with me, and landing me with detention!

I sighed, glaring at Will one last time, who looked a little to smug. I thought about complaining to Mr. Riley, but the 'he started it' protest was a little childish for someone who was close to graduating from school.

---

As soon as the bell signalled the end of class, I dumped all my books into my tote bag and bolted through the classroom door, not wanting to start another argument with Will or Mr. Riley.

Another hour added onto the hour I already had for detention was not appealing to me and my now not so perfect record. I quickly made a pit stop at my locker, removing my Creative Writing files and pulling out my Mathematics and Political Science books, shoving them into my tote bag. "Hey Lizzie!" I turned and saw Charlotte Lucas, my best friend walking down the corridor towards me. "Hey," I muttered, not really in the mood to be happy. As our hippy drama teacher put it, I was in 'X' mode.

"What's wrong?" Char asked, noticing my sour mood. "I have detention this afternoon," I said, slamming the door to my locker shut.

"You're kidding," Char laughed. "You have never had detention."

"I know," I said, hitching my bag onto my shoulder.

"So how did you land said detention?" Char asked. "All because of some idiotic person who has decided to make my life a living hell." We headed down the corridor to Political Science, another of my favourite classes.

"Will Darcy," Char guessed.

"How did you know?" I replied sarcastically. "He's in my homeroom, along with Charlie. I heard them discussing their timetables, and Will mentioned that he had Creative Writing."

"Does that mean he actually talked to you?" I said, feigning shock. Char laughed. "He was saying thank you for the New Year's Eve party. Well, Charlie was doing the talking, and Will just nodded," she added.

"Typical," I muttered. "Lizzie, you really should not judge Will. You hardly know him," Char said as we stopped in front of our classroom for Political Science. "I know enough to not like him and think him an arrogant person," I said, walking into the classroom, Char right behind me.

I stopped in my tracks, Char bumping into me. Will Darcy was sitting in the front row of the classroom, looking at me with one of those looks that say "I know you were talking about me because I overheard the entire conversation."

I bit my lip, and sat down in an available seat in the back row, as far away as possible from Will Darcy.

After class, Char said goodbye, leaving me to head towards the Performing Arts Centre for her Drama class. I headed out of the classroom, only to bump into Will, who was trying to get through the door at the same time. I stepped back, allowing him to leave, but he stepped back also.

"Ladies first," he said, sweeping his hand open. Without looking at him, I left the classroom, keeping my head down all the way to my Mathematics class.

We got stuck into the class work straight away, going through the overview of what the Education Council expects of us for our A Levels in Mathematics. Concentrating hard on the Geometry that Mrs. Palmer had written up on the whiteboard, not noticing that two seats behind and to the left sat Will Darcy, who could not concentrate on his work because he was too busy daydreaming about a certain person's blue eyes.

I met up with Char and Jane for lunch in the hall. The seniors had their lunch at a different time for the middle school, so that there were not large amounts of students milling around the lunch hall and the grounds in one time.

I found Char sitting by herself at the table we usually ate at, picking at a Tupperware container of salad. "Hey," I said, sitting down opposite her, pulling out my own Tupperware container of Caesar salad. "Where is Jane?" I asked. "Coming now," Char said, gulping down a piece of lettuce and pointing her fork. A minute later and Jane appeared, carrying a sandwich from the canteen.

"Hey Jane," I said, looking up at my sister. She looked dazed. "Jane," I said, waving a hand in front of her face. "Guess who is here," she whispered, slowly unwrapping her sandwich.

"Who?" asked Charlotte.

"Charlie Bingley." The name came out all strangled.

"Yeah - he is in my homeroom," Char pointed out. "Will Darcy is here as well," I grumbled.

"When did you find out about Charlie?"

"Just then," Jane replied. "He was in the lunch line. He said he was in Chemistry next, with me."

_Brilliant_, I thought. _There goes my lab partner._ Jane and I were in Chemistry together, and had been lab partners since Year Eleven.

"Lizzie?" Jane said. "Hmm?" I said, tearing myself away from my thoughts. "You would not mind if I was Charlie's lab partner, do you?" she asked. "Caroline is in the class as well. Maybe you could be partners."

"That's fine," I said to Jane, smiling. "Great!" Jane said, biting into her sandwich. I sighed, picking at a crouton in my salad. _Great_, I thought, mimicking Jane's tone. _I get to spend the rest of the year with Caroline Bingley as my lab partner. Oh joy!_

That afternoon I headed towards Mr. Riley's classroom for detention. "Glad you could join us," Mr. Riley said as I entered the room.

"Find a seat and you can finish your short story." I looked around the classroom. There were a few kids in here, mainly the ones labelled 'Undesirables'. 'Undesirables' were the rebel kids, the teens gone bad.

They smoked, drank alcohol on school grounds, rarely turned up for classes, and when they did show up, they usually caused disturbances, hence the reason they were in detention.

So why did the school not get rid of these 'Undesirables'? The main reason was that their parents were wealthy and influential people who were always donating this and that to the school to keep their beloved children at the school and away from home.

I chose a seat and desk close to the window, which was as far away as I could get from the Undesirables as I could without actually falling out the window. Setting my bag on the floor beside me, I took my CW file out, opening it to the page where I had begun to write my short story about money, and started writing.

It was hard to concentrate though, because the girl two desks to my left was listening to some music, which was blaring into her ears so loudly that I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up deaf.

I sighed, scribbling out some of my writing. I heard the scratching of a pen, and turned to see the girl drawing something on her arm. She looked up and glared at me, and I looked back down at my page.

For about ten minutes I wrote utter nonsense, until I was once again distracted, not by the girl but by the door opening this time.

A boy walked in, his school uniform untidy and not tucked in. His white shirt hung out under the blue vest he was wearing, the edges falling over his blue pants. He wore white sneakers instead of the customary black shoes we were supposed to wear. His tie hung loosely around his neck.

Mr. Riley looked up from the marking he was doing. "Ah, Mr. Wickham. How kind of you to grace us with your presence," Mr. Riley said. "Find a seat and get on with some work." I looked at the boy - Wickham - as he scanned the room, looking for a seat.

Our eyes met, and he grinned. Wickham started to come towards where I was sitting, and flung himself into the chair next to me.

"Hi," he smiled, flashing me his pearly white teeth. I smiled back, and went back to the work I was supposed to be doing.

"So," I heard the boy say. "What are you in here for?" I looked up, realising that he was talking to me. He leaned towards me, his blonde hair flopping in his face. He didn't attempt to move the strands of hair out of his eyes.

"I have been wrongly put in here," I whispered back.

"An innocent," Wickham mused, his blue eyes sparkling. "Wrongly convicted of a crime you did not commit."

"Something like that," I laughed silently. "What are you in here for?" I whispered. "I haven't seen you around before."

"First day. Made a lot of great impressions," Wickham whispered back. "What's your name?" I asked.

"George," was the reply. "Nice to meet you George," I said smiling, before turning back to my work.

"I would say the same to you, but I don't know your name," George said, making me look up from my work.

"Just Lizzie," I whispered. "Well, it is very nice to meet you, Just Lizzie." I laughed, causing Mr. Riley to look up.

"I thought you would have learnt your lesson Lizzie. No talking please." I nodded, glancing at George, who was making faces at Mr. Riley, the latter unable to see him because of someone in front of George.

I bit my lip, trying hard not to laugh. I felt the caterpillars in my stomach turn to butterflies. George certainly was cute, plus he had charm and he was funny. There was also that 'bad boy' streak in him that in a strange way was attractive.

_Everything that Will Darcy is not_, a little voice in the back of my head said. I snuck a peek at George who was now reading a book - _War and Peace_ by Leo Tolstoy. I smiled, and started to write my short story.

--

"You can all leave now," Mr. Riley said after an hour had gone by. I packed away my things, leaving my story out. "George, please come and see me," Mr. Riley said.

George lent over to me as he swung his bag across his shoulder. "Wait for me outside," he whispered. I nodded, and went to hand in the assessment.

"Thank you Lizzie. You're a good student. Please do not let this happen again," Mr. Riley said. "I won't Sir." I looked at George, who was waiting to speak to Mr. Riley, and left the room, catching the start of their conversation as I left.

"George, this is not good. Your first day here and you're already in trouble. Now I, unlike the other teachers, do not care who your parents are. If you misbehave again, you will be suspended…" the door closed behind me, and I waited for George.

He appeared a few minutes later. "You waited," George said with a look of surprise on his face. I shrugged my shoulders.

"You asked me to," was my reply. We left the school grounds, crossing the street to cut through the park.

"Ooh, coffee," I said. I looked at George. "Mind if we detour?" I asked. "Not if it means I get to spend me time with you," George said. I blushed.

_Come on!_ I said to myself. _You have got to pull yourself together!_ We walked into _The Park_. "Do you want one?" I asked, pulling out a tenner.

"I'll have what you're having," George said, quoting _When Harry Met Sally_. He wriggled his eyebrows as he said it. I laughed, moving to the front of the counter. "Two hot chocolates to takeaway please," I asked the waiter, Joe, at the counter.

"Sure Liz," he said.

"He knew your name," George mused. "I am a regular," I said, smiling.

"Jane and I usually come here all the time after school." I tugged my scarf out of my bag, wrapping it around my neck. It was freezing.

"Aren't you cold?" I asked George. He was just wearing his uniform, no coat or anything. "Nope. I am a reptile," he jested.

"Two hot chocolates," Joe called, and we walked back to the counter to claim our drink. "I put in an extra marshmallow, but don't tell Paul," Joe said, winking at me. "Thanks Joe," I laughed. "Bye!" We left the café, and started to walk through St. James Park. "It is so nice and warm!" I said, wrapping my cold hands around my warm Styrofoam cup. George laughed.

"Maybe tomorrow you would consider wearing gloves," he said, wiggling his fingers to show his black ones.

"I left them on the kitchen table last night, and when I went to get them this morning, they were gone. Kitty or Lydia must have nicked them," I explained.

"Who are Kitty and Lydia?" George asked, while I took a sip of my hot chocolate. "My younger sisters. They go to London Grammar as well. My other sister, Mary is the only one who does not - she goes to an arts school, because they have a specialised music program."

"So you there are four of you then?" George asked. "Yep. Oh - and Jane. She's the same age as me, but older by a couple of months." "How does that work?" "Jane was born in January, and I'm an October baby," I explained.

"I see," George said. We spent the rest of the walk talking about our families. Well, mainly mine. All I found out about George's was that he was an only child and his parents did not like him very much, especially after a certain incident, so they packed him off to live with his grandparents.

"Why did they send you off then? Are you an 'Undesirable'?" I asked, smiling. "A what?"

"An Undesirable. It is what we call kids at school that are bad asses who smoke behind the garden shed and turn up late for classes," I said, cringing at my bad attempt to rhyme.

"Well I certainly do not smoke, but I do have a being late problem, so that must make me an Undesirable then," George said, laughing. "Of course," I said, laughing with him. "So what did you do?"

We paused to cross the street, turning down another which was my own street. "I punched a guy from my old school in the face," he said nonchalantly. Why was I not surprised?

"Classy. That definitely makes you an Undesirable," I laughed. We walked in silence for a while longer, until we reached my house.

"Well this is me," I said, fiddling with my empty cup. "I will see you at school tomorrow?" George asked, looking at me hopefully.

"The question is will I see you? After all, you do have a problem with being late, remember," I said slyly. "Of course I do!" George said, feigning forgetfulness. I laughed. "I will see you later," I said, waving goodbye before I went inside. I closed the door, leaning against it.


	4. Opinions

Was my New Year's resolution coming true already? I thought. Was George interested in me? No, he couldn't be. We'd only just met after all!

"Where have you been?" Mum came out of the kitchen, hands on her hips. I smiled sheepishly.

How was I ever going to explain the detention to my mother? Luckily I was saved by Lydia, who came bouncing down the stairs two at a time, thumping as she went along.

"Mum, can I borrow some money?" she asked, turning on her charms. "No Lydia. I lent you ten pounds last week and you still haven't paid me back yet," our mother replied, and stormed back into the kitchen.

Lydia pouted and turned around. I was shrugging out of my coat when Lydia accosted me. "Lizzie please, please pretty please can I borrow some money? I am going out with the girls tonight and am completely broke," was her excuse.

"Lydia, you should save your money more wisely," I sighed. I gave in though, and pulled out a ten pound note, handing it over to Lydia.

After all, we are sisters, and I would like to think that Lydia would help me out in a sticky situation. Plus I was also in a good mood, which helped to influence my decision a lot.

"Thanks Lizzie!" she said, giving me a hug before racing back upstairs, yelling something at Kitty.

I followed her upstairs and entered my own room, dropping my bag down by my desk and flinging the coat over the swinging desk chair. I jumped on my bed and my cat Munkstrap squeeze through the crack in my bedroom door and jumping on my bed, meowing.

"Hello," I crooned, scratching him under the chin as he readied himself for a sleep. I chuckled softly. Munkstrap was purring like a car engine. Eventually, he curled up and went straight to sleep, but not without licking himself clean first. I heard a soft knock on the door.

"Lizzie?" Jane called, poking her head around the door. "Hullo," I said, stretching like Munkstrap and sitting up. Jane came and sat on the other side of my bed, petting the cat, who had completely conked out.

"How was the detention?" Jane whispered, knowing that I was not planning to tell mum or dad about it. "It was alright – Mr. Riley just made me finish off my Creative Writing stuff," I replied. "Oh – and I made a new friend," I added, lying back on the bed with Jane so that our heads touched.

"What, with someone in the detention room?" she asked, surprised.

"Yeah. His name is George Wickham, and he is absolutely wonderful. He is funny and he reads books." Jane laughed at this.

"Not just any books though. Good books, like the classics," I argued. "Okay, so he's funny and he reads good books. What does he look like? Would I have seen him before?" Jane asked, firing her questions at a million miles a minute. I laughed.

"He is quite good looking. Blonde hair, blue eyes; the standard. He is new, and his parents shipped him off to live with his grandparents because, get this, he _punched _somebody." Jane sat up.

"Really?" she asked, shocked. "Falling for the bad boy then Lizzie?" she joked. I grabbed one of my small pillows and whacked her across the head. "He really is nice though," I argued.

"Whatever floats your boat," she said, hopping off the bed. "Guess what?" Jane said.

"I have a date on Saturday night." Jane was grinning from ear to ear. "What?" I yelled, sitting up.

"With Charlie?" Jane nodded. "Yes!" I danced around the room with Jane. "How exciting!" I said.

"When did he ask you?"

"We had Mathematics together, and he asked me when we walked to class," Jane said. "I am so happy for you Jane, you really deserve this! Charlie and you… well you just fit," I said, giving Jane a hug.

"Thank you Lizzie. You know that your opinion matters to me a lot," Jane replied fondly. "Jane, in your eyes everyone's opinion matters," I said jokingly. "I have to go - I said to Caroline that I would chat to her online tonight," Jane said, exiting through the adjoining bathroom into her own room.

"Well Munks, it looks like it is back to just me and you," I said, stroking the tabby cat. "If only I was lucky in love like Jane," I said to myself. Little did I know that the 'one' for me was right on my doorstep (not literally, of course), though who it was I did not know.

---

I hurried into my History class the next day, glancing at my watch. I had missed the bus that goes past the school, and had to walk. I had forgotten to set my alarm, and had slept in, only waking up when I had heard Jane coming into my room, telling me it was time to get up otherwise I would be late.

Ignoring my mother's protests to take me to school as I scoffed down some Marmite and toast, I decided the take the bus. I had not appreciated how late I really was, and had just made it down to the bus stop to see the bus leaving.

I made for my seat in the back of the classroom, next to the window. I was still tired from doing our History assignment on the Tudors last night that I did not notice that someone was already sitting in my seat.

"That is my seat," I said to the person sitting in it. The person looked up from a book and smiled at me. I think I swooned, if you could call it that, as I saw that it was George sitting in the chair.

"I am terribly sorry, I did not realise that it had your name on it," George said, making to move out of the chair. I told him to stay and I would find another desk, as I tried to think of something clever to say.

"You came to class early," I said, sliding into the chair next to George. "And you're late. I think I am already becoming a bad influence on you." I laughed.

"Possibly," I said, pulling out my assignment. Mrs. Craft, the History teacher walked into the classroom. "Good morning class! Today we will be starting your big, end of year assessment, which will be done in groups that I will select. Once you're in your group and you have your topic, then you will go to the library and start the assessment straight away," she said, quietening the class down.

George stood up, winking at me and went to the front of the classroom and whispered something to Mrs. Craft, handing her a piece of paper. I stared at him, watching the way his hair flopped to one side as he talked.

I closed my eyes, tired, reopening them to see some one's back a few metres from me. The person in front of me straightened up their back, but not in the way, you would do to get good posture.

The person's back was rigid. Upon a closer look, I noticed that it was Will in front of me. Confused, I looked from Will to George, who was returning to his seat. George noticed Will as well, and his smiling face disappeared, and he turned quite pale as he saw Will.

Sitting down in his seat, George was still pale, and I tried to get his attention, without any success. _What was all that about? _I thought turning my attention back to Mrs. Craft how had started speaking again.

"Now then, your groups," she said, picking up a piece of paper. "You will be giving a twenty minute presentation on two influential people in history, my choice." This last remark was met with groans from various class members. "The decisions are final. No changing topics, and there is no changing groups."

More groans followed. I hoped I was with Char, who was sitting in the front row, writing something down. "Groups will be as follows," Mrs. Craft said, consulting her list. "Lucas, Crowley, Richards and Wright you will be doing King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. Bingley, Bennet and Darcy you will be doing Marc Antony and Cleopatra. Wickham you can join their group." I looked at Mrs. Craft, groaning.

No way was I working with Will and Caroline. "Mrs. Craft…," I started to say. "Groups are final," she said. I groaned. "Hey, I can't be that bad, can I?" I heard George say. I looked up, and saw him standing next to my desk.

"Not you," I laughed pathetically as he smiled that wonderful smile. "Other people." I looked to where Will and Caroline were standing.

Will was glaring at us. Well, not really I but he definitely was glaring at George. "Will you two hurry up?" Caroline called. "We want to get the assessment done, so we are going to the library."

"This is going to be fun," I said, gathering up my things and following George out of the classroom. "Oh yes, working with Will Darcy is my idea of an entertaining time," George said sarcastically.

"What is with you two? I saw the look he gave you," I said. "And the way you looked at him. Do you know each other?"

"Remember how I said to you the other day that the reason I came to London was because I punched someone?" George said, looking at me.

I nodded, remembering our conversation. "Well that someone was Will Darcy." "No!" I said, surprised. "Derbyshire is a small place," George replied, looking straight ahead. I did not press the issue, even though this latest fact had me interested and wanting to know more.

"Okay then. This should be a riot," I smiled, entering the library. "Very much so Lizzie," George said, looking down at me with that gorgeous smile.

--

"Lizzie!" I heard someone yell out. I looked around, and saw Lydia coming towards me. "Quiet please!" the library lady hissed as Lydia sprinted past the desk. Lydia giggled, putting her hand up to her mouth.

"Oops. Can you tell Mum I won't be coming home for dinner tonight," she said, not realising that I had someone with me.

"Where are you going?" I asked. Lydia was notorious in our household for going out for dinner and not coming home until the next day after school. "I am going to Lucy's, to sleep probably.

"Hello," she said, finally noticing George, her eyes lighting up at the sight of him. "Hullo," George replied back, ever so politely. "I'm Lydia," Lydia said, holding out her hand. George shook it, and I noticed that gleam in Lydia's eyes, the one she gets when she is about to set herself a challenge.

I sighed inwardly. Of course George would be more attracted to Lydia more than me; it was only natural after all. Lydia was gorgeous and she had some sort of charm that instantly attracted guys to her.

Not that she was ever successful in keeping one attached. Lydia went through boyfriends like she did with shoes, and even then she keeps her shoes longer than she does her boyfriends.

--

I sighed. "I am going scream if Caroline giggles like a hyena one more time," I muttered to George. He laughed.

We were seated at one of the study desks in the new library that the school had just built. George and I had found loads of books about Marc Antony and Cleopatra, but the other two seemed not to care too much about doing any actual work.

Caroline seemed to be trying her best to get Will's attention, but he was too preoccupied with something on his page. I noticed he had gone a pale colour, and he kept glancing up and down at George, a scowl plastered on his face.

I noticed that George had inched his chair as far away from Will as he could possibly be, which in hindsight that was not really far away. Will had only spoken once, to say something to Caroline, who was hanging off him like an IV Drip, which is a disgusting analogy I know, but it was what she was doing.

The scraping of Will's chair made me look up from my reading. "Excuse me," Will said, getting up from the table still glaring at George.

"What is his problem?" I said to George. "His pride is just hurt, that is all," George said, looking uncomfortable.

"I will be back," I said, also getting up and heading in the direction that Will went. I found him in a completely different section to the one that we had retrieved our books from.

"What is your problem?" I hissed to him. Will turned so that he was facing me. "What is _my_ problem?" he hissed back.

"That is what I just said. Seriously, you need to get over yourself Will." "What?" came Will's reply.

"George told me what happened in Derbyshire," I said, hands on my hips. "About how you both got into a fight and he punched you. You're such a sore loser Will, it is quite pathetic."

Will's face whiten even more, so that he looked like a ghost now. "I am pathetic? Is that what you really think of me?" I nodded. "Maybe you should get your facts straight before you judge people Elizabeth," he snarled.

"I usually do. But I have had enough evidence about your character and personality that I can and am prepared to make that judgement," I retorted. "And I can safely say that it is one of disappointment, as you're one of the rudest people I have ever met in my entire life," I spat.

Will stood there in shock at my outburst, staring into my eyes with such penetration that I had to look away. "Thank you, Elizabeth, for giving me your opinion," was all he said, before he turned around and walked back to the table, not even looking at George as he sat down.

"It's Lizzie," I muttered angrily, following Will back to the table.


End file.
